Type-writing machine.



No. 799,099. PATENTED SEPT. 12, 1905. S. T. SMITH. TYPE WRITING MAGHINE.

APPLIOATIDN I'ILED JUNE 3.1904.

WITNESSES. 2 INVENTOR yam/45 M (7M W 1 TLMA BY @2424 A; ATTORNEY UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

STEPHEN T. SMITH, OF NEiV YORK, N. Y., ASSIGUOR TO UNDERTVOOD TYPElVRITER COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

TYPE-WRITING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 12, 1905.

A li ati fil d June 3, 1904. Serial No. 210,968.

To (I/ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, STEPHEN T. SMITH, a citizen of the United States, residing in the borough of Manhattan, city of New York. in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tlype-Vriting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to means for facilitating the mastery of touch-writing or writing by touch upon a type-writing machine that is, the art of operating a type-writer keyboard without looking at the keys. 'hile this art is of decided advantage to the operator, it is ditticult to acquire, owing largely to the uncontrollable habit of the eyes of glancing at the keys during their operation by the fingers. It has been proposed to use blank keys in place of the usual character-bearing keys; but this is found not to overcome the difliculty, since the eyes still occupy themselves by looking at the keyboard and continue to aid the fingers to a great extent in locating the keys, whereas the desideratum in touch-writing is to educate the fingers to locate the keys unaided by the eyes, thus permitting the operator to study his notes without interruption while manipulating the keyboard.

The object of my invention is to provide means for preventing the eyes from studying the keyboard; and to this end I have contrived to interpose an opaque or other screen between the keyboard and the eyes of the operator in such a manner as not to interfere with the necessary movements of the hands over the keyboard. This screen may be readily removed from the keyboard when not wanted, being preferably constructed so as to permit of its ready detachment from the machine and attachment thereto, as required.

In the accompanyingdrawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a screen made in accordance with my invention and attached to the framework (shown in dotted lines) of an Underwood type-writing machine. Fig. 2 shows a type-writer keyboard marked upon the face of the screen.

The screen comprises a forwardly and downward ly sloping plate 1, preferably having along its lower edge a ledge 2 and supported above the keyboard 3 of the machine by means of a pairof brackets t t, of plate orsheet metal, each bracket comprising a rear-\\'ardlyextcnd ing hook 5 to catch upon the rear edge of a horizontal cap-plate 6, usually provided in the Underwood machine between the front corner posts or standards T and a downwardly-extending arm 8, bent laterally at its lower end, as at 9, to receive a rubber band 10, the latter forming a cushion which rests against the front vertical plate or wall of the machine, which usually extends across from one standard T to the other. The screen rests sutliciently high above the keyboard to permit an ample range of movement of the hands and is sufliciently forward to screen the keys from the eyes of the operator. By means of the hooks 5 the screen may be instantly attached and of course may be readily detached.

By means of this invention any type-miting machine without changing the keys may be used for practicing touch-writing by simply attaching the screen thereto, and whenever desired the screen may be removed, so as to enable the machine to be used by another operator in the ordinary way. The screen is not only simple and effective, but may be produced at merely nominal cost.

As seen at Fig. 2, I prefer to mark upon the upper surface of the screen a representation 11 of a type-writer keyboard, the keys having their natural sizes and positions, thus furnishing an aid to the operator, who is studying out the keyboard with his lingers beneath the screen.

Variations maybe resorted to within the scope of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, 1 claim 1. A type-writcr-keyboard screen comprising a plate having at each end a real-wardlyextending hook and a rest extending downwardly from said plate.

2. A type-writer-keyboard screen comprising a screen-plate and a pair of supportingplates secured to'the ends thereof, each supporting-plate having a rearwardly-extending hook and a downwardly-extending rest-arm Whose lower end is bent laterally and is adapted to receive a cushioning-band.

3. A forwardly and downwardly sloping keyboard screen-plate having an upturned copy-holding ledge along its lower edge and provided upon its under side with a pair of supports whereby it may be attached to the I O framework of a type-writing machine.

4. A type-writer-keyboard screen having thereon a representation of the keyboard of a type-writing machine.

STEPHEN T. SMITH.

Vitnesses:

M. S. EYLAR, B. C. STIOKNEY. 

